Thursday, May 19, 2016

Crossover Covers: The Year of High Treason

In
1911, Sherlock Holmes, Dr. Watson, Arsène
Lupin, A. J. Raffles, Bunny Manders, Rudolf Rassendyll, Fritz von
Tarlenheim, Rupert of Hentzau, Sir Denis Nayland Smith, Dr. Petrie,
Fu Manchu, Kâramanèh,
the jungle lord, and Michael Strogoff all become embroiled in an
affair revolving around King George V’s Coronation Durbar in Delhi,
India. Rassendyll and Rupert died in Anthony Hope’s novel Rupert
of Hentzau,
which takes place in 1890. No explanation is given for their apparent
survival. Combined with the revelation Kâramanèh is not only a
Tamil whose real name is Kannamma, but a loyal agent of Fu Manchu’s
who deceived Petrie, this places Rajan’s novel outside CU
continuity.